19 Under-The-Radar Places In Southeast Asia That Will Actually Change Your Life

If the flocks of postgrad travelers in elephant print pants haven’t told you already, Southeast Asia is having what we like to call “a moment.”

It’s not an area of the world that tops everyone’s bucket list, but Southeast Asia does have its share of over-touristed sites, and tourist traps certainly exist.

Want to know which authentic places backpackersreallyget amped about?

1. Pai, Thailand

If you uprooted the hippie neighborhoods of San Francisco and plopped them into the jungles of northern Thailand, you’d (roughly) end up with Pai.Ride your motorbikea few hours into this mountain town for a chillaxing weekend of zenning out at Rasta bars, napping in woven hammocks, and — if you can manage to leave your field hut — exploring thewaterfalls and hot springs.

2. Phu Quoc Island, Vietnam

Almost everybody agrees that Phu Quoc is about to become Vietnam’s next hot destination, but thankfully the perfect beaches are still mostly empty. You canrent a motorbike(no license needed, no questions asked) and zip up, down, and around the red dirt roads of this island paradise. Then, take asnorkeling or scubadip. Hurry up, before other people discover the secret.

They’renot far from Saigon, but these sand dunes seem like they belong on another continent entirely. You can sled, bike, or just freely frolic down both white and red mountains of bliss. Be sure to find theFairy Stream, a magical river with a soft, sandy bottom that flows between dry rocks.

This is one of Southeast Asia’s most popularhill stations, holiday towns at the base of lush, low mountains. Travelers agree the Cameron Highlands are a perfect escape when you’re too hot to withstand another day of astronomically-sizzling Malaysian temperatures. You cantour one of several authentic tea factoriesbefore cozying up to a mug overlooking the rolling green hills.

7. Ngwe Saung Beach, Myanmar

Weary travelers looking to literally escape it all should head to Ngwe Saung, an astonishing NINE MILES of beach thatjust recently opened to the public. It’s unspoiled, uncrowded, and some of the best scenery you’ll see in Myanmar.

8. The Mekong Delta, Vietnam

The Mekong River creates a rich marshland responsible for the bulk of Vietnam’s rice crops. There are oodles of tiny villages and floating markets to visit, with kindly locals who will gladly let you sample their fruit or teach you to birdwatch. Avoid feeling like a yuppie in a tour boat bybiking the Delta— that way, you can see the impressive rice paddies and stop off at destinations on your own.

9. Sapa, Vietnam

There’s nowhere on Earth like Sapa: tiers on tiers of bright-green rice fields are dotted with the colorful clothes of hill-tribe dwellers and roofs ofFrench colonial villas. Sometimes the view gets clouded by a warm, jungle-y mist, but it only makes your day of hiking even prettier.

10. The Marina Bay Sands, Singapore

This$5.7 billion hotel— which also boasts shopping, adinosaur museum, and a concert hall — has a yacht-shaped infinity pool teetering on the 57th floor. When you take a swim, it feels like you’re about to spill over the edge and onto glittering Singapore beneath you.

UNESCO named Luang Prabang aWorld Heritage Site, partly for its architecture that fuses Asian and European styles together. As in much of Asia, elephant tourism is huge here. But not many places havefour-daymahoutcourseswhere you can learn to expertly (and humanely) ride elephants as their keepers do.

This larger-than-life temple complex really is as epic as it looks. Thebiggest religious monument in the worldis surrounded by a wide-open moat– you’ll march down a massive stone causeway to enter a village of temples, life-size stone-carved faces, and giant tree roots that have grown to twist over and around dark, windowed hallways.

When backpackers want to visit one of thehundreds of islandsoff Thailand’s coast, they normally head for the “big names” likeKo Tao(known for its scuba diving) orKo Phangan(home of the famous full moon parties). These islands are pretty and so are the foreigners that visit them, but for a true Thai experience, try the blissfully emptyKo Lanta, where theNational Marine Parkprotects unpolluted oceans that explode with angelfish.

18. Cu Chi Tunnels in Saigon, Vietnam

Viet Cong soldiers usedthese narrow, claustrophobia-inducing tunnelsas hiding places during the Vietnam War. Trap doors in the jungle led down into the underground network, where soldiers suffered from malaria and parasites while guarding food sources. The eeriness is all too real during a modern-day tour.

19. Chiang Dao, Thailand

This forested region is a Disneyland for nature junkies complete withwaterfalls, hot springs, and incredible limestone cliffs. The biggest attractions of all are theChiang Dao Caves, which consist of about 100 caverns that extend as far as 40,000 feet into the mountains. You can enter five of the caves alone or with a guide to explore narrow rocky hallways, hanging stalactites and hidden Buddha statues.